Energetic polymers as binders in composite propellants and explosives

The principles behind the use of polymeric binders in composite propellants and explosives are described with emphasis on the properties which they should possess in order to satisfy the requirements for inclusion in a composition. The desirability of using energetic polymers as binders in terms of both performance and safety, and the problems associated with their preparation and properties, are discussed. The contributions of chemical synthesis within DRA to overcome these problems will be shown. Preparation of energetic polymers both by polymer modification and by polymerization of an energetic monomer is described. We have developed three energetic polymers: poly-3-nitratomethyl-3-methyloxetane (polyNIMMO), polyglycidyl nitrate (polyG-LYN) and nitrated hydroxy-terminated polybutadiene (NHTPB). Two of these (polyNIMMO and polyGLYN) have shown excellent properties in propellant and explosive formulations and proved that low-vulnerability, high-performance compositions are possible. The properties of the products from our work are compared with those of other groups and a glimpse of the future in this area is given to show the potential for new energetic polymers.